ST. THOMAS, U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS -- It was almost 26 years ago, nine games into Jim Calhoun's tenure, when UConn -- then a semi-relevant Big East program -- was upended by Hartford, 49-48.

Since then, the Huskies have played 66 in-state opponents, and they've defeated every single one.

A quarter-century of Nutmeg dominance was on the line Sunday night, and as Ryan Boatright and Shabazz Napier launched brick-after-brick, it seemed almost inevitable that Quinnipiac coach Tom Moore, the ex-UConn assistant, would wake up Monday with a program-changing victory.

Then a funny thing happened, something that should no longer come as a surprise: Napier, brutal for 37 minutes, tapped into his zone, and UConn finally exhaled with an 89-83 victory, a grueling, physically-exhausting see-saw battle that needed two overtimes to be decided.

Napier, Boatright and Omar Calhoun combined for 65 points on 28-for-31 shooting from the foul line.

Two days after he reeled off 10 points in 2:08, Napier poured in 11 over the final 3:24 to erase a 10-point deficit and force overtime. He converted a coast-to-coast layup with 4.2 seconds remaining to force the extra session.

The junior guard scored the first points of overtime, and his backcourt mate, Boatright, came alive as well, tallying six points in a row. Four Napier free throws appeared to seal the deal, but Quinnipiac guard Dave Johnson answered with a crossover on Ryan Boatright and a 3-pointer that knotted the score, 77-77, with 4.2 seconds left in the initial overtime period. UConn (4-0) never trailed in the second OT.

As tremendous as Napier and Boatright were over the final 13 minutes, they were equally terrible at the beginning. The duo, which averages a combined 31 points per game, started 1-for-18 from the field. Napier finished with 29 points, putting the Huskies on his back.

UConn went 39-45 from the line, which helped negate the backcourt's horrific shooting -- at least early on -- and the frontcourt's inability to rebound with Quinnipiac. Led by broad-shouldered 6-foot-7 junior Ike Azotam, the Bobcats beat UConn on the boards, 44-35.

The Huskies face New Mexico in Monday's Paradise Jam championship game. Tip is set for 10 p.m.